It has only been since the early years of the 20th century that gastointestinal diseases have been controlled to an acceptable level in most developed countries. This level of control was due to multiple factors: wastewater control, personal hygiene improvements, pasteurization of milk and advances in food preparation and storage. While it is still assumed that a significant portion of gastrointestinal illnesses is waterborne and foodborne, we have very little data to estimate the proportion of the overall burden of disease by route of exposure. Most available data relates to outbreaks-waterborne, foodbome or infectious - but more is needed. The American Academy of Microbiology proposes convening a colloquium entitled "The Global Burden of Infectious Diseases Through the Gastrointestinal Tract: A Critical Scientific Assessment of Exposure," in Ireland on February 15-18, 2002. The colloquium will bring together scientists with broad expertise to consider the science of this issue. Participants will be drawn from the sciences of microbiology, medicine, sanitation, public health, and epidemiology. The colloquium format developed by the American Academy of Microbiology is very different from a typical conference. There are not prepared presentations per se. Instead, the 40 invited participants spend two and half days discussing the issues and developing specific recommendations and action plan. Each participant is assigned to a working group of approximately 10 scientists; all groups are interdisciplinary. Each group addresses the same issues, thereby working towards consensus. Following the colloquium, a report will be developed - in both print and electronic formats - that will be analytical and comprehensive, yet offer practical recommendations for the future. The report will be broadly announced and made available through many popular and scientific media.